Various conventional devices permit measurement of different time intervals. For example, stopwatches are capable of measuring a period of time to hundredths or thousandths of a second, with the press of a single button. Such devices have various advantageous features, such as the ability to time multiple runners within the same race. Other examples include “kitchen timers”, which may be used to measure an amount of cooking time. Such devices may be capable of counting “up” (i.e. measuring an indefinite period of time starting from a time zero) or “down” (i.e., counting down from a preset time until zero).
Since the many events being measured by timing devices may vary in length, a corresponding kitchen timer measuring only hours and minutes may be of limited use in measuring runners in a 100 meter race, whereas the high accuracy of a stopwatch may be wasted measuring the cooking of a turkey. Moreover, since a given timer is often used for measuring different events, it would be advantageous for a timer to have the ability to switch between different levels of accuracy at the direction of the user.
Conventional timers of which the instant inventors are aware do not have such an ability. For example, the game timer described in published U.S. Patent Application No. US/2001/0034256 A1 may be initially displayed in hours and decrease in one hour increments until less than one hour remains. At that point, the time display automatically switches to minutes and decreases in one minute increments. When less than one minute remains, the time display automatically switches to seconds and decreases in one second increments.